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At least 3 people killed in hit-and-run crashes in 2 weeks

One victim was walking down the street, another was riding a scooter and another was a passenger in a car.

DENVER — At the intersection of 54th Avenue and Federal Boulevard, a new memorial marks yet another life lost.

"He will be remembered forever and ever," said Greg Manzi, whose son Jonathan Fanter was killed early Sunday morning while riding his scooter. "He is a great man and always will be."

At least three people have been killed in the past 10 days in hit-and-run crashes in Denver. One person was walking down the street, another was riding a scooter and another was a passenger in a car. It’s a deadly stretch of days in a year that’s seen an increase in deadly crashes on the road.

The pickup truck hit 26-year-old Fanter so hard it cracked his helmet. The truck driver didn’t stop to try and help him.

Credit: KUSA

"It is heartbreaking. It’s beyond heartbreaking," Manzi said. "The person who hit my son and continued to go is a coward."

The Colorado State Patrol is looking for a red pickup truck. The only picture available is blurry and difficult to see.

Credit: KUSA

RELATED: Scooter rider killed in hit-and-run

Manzi isn’t the only person in Denver feeling this unimaginable pain as he searches for answers.

Police sent out a Crime Stoppers alert Monday asking for information on Taylor Lindsey, who police say crashed into a car, killing a passenger, at 40th Avenue and Peña Boulevard on Saturday. Lindsey has now been taken into custody, Denver jail records show.

RELATED: 1 dead, others injured in hit-and-run crash in Denver

Police said on the evening of July 23, four separate cars ran over a pedestrian who had been hit at Sheridan Boulevard and First Avenue. Not a single driver stopped to help. 

Credit: KUSA

A Ford single-cab pickup truck with a long bed hit Juana Murillo-Gutierrez, who was in the northbound lanes of Sheridan and not in a crosswalk, police said.

She was thrown into the southbound lanes and was struck by a white SUV with aftermarket wheels – white-trimmed wheels with black center spokes.

While she lay in the roadway, two more vehicles ran over her – a light-colored Chevy or GMC pickup with a ladder rack, and a dark-colored passenger vehicle.

Police released video of the crash in hopes someone would recognize the cars involved.

RELATED: Denver Police looking for 4 drivers who hit pedestrian, left the scene

"Traffic fatalities in general are going in the wrong direction," said Jill Locantore, head of the Denver Streets Partnership. "Hit-and-runs unfortunately are a substantial portion of those."

The Denver Streets Partnership advocates for safer streets. Locantore said more needs to be done to make walking safer for pedestrians and everyone.

"These tragedies are preventable. We have the solutions available to us," Locantore said. "We know how to change our street designs. We know how to use enforcement more effectively. We know how to give people options other than driving to get around. But we just don’t have the political will to do those things fast enough and on the scale that would really make a difference."

Now families wait for answers, at far too many intersections across the city.

"We ask for your help," Manzi said. "Just be anonymous, do whatever."

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